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Google tends to offer freebies or discounts to its paid Google One subscribers every once in a while. Last year, the company gave a free Google Nest mini to subscribers who upgraded to the 2TB storage plan. The year before that, it offered free Home minis to One subscribers in the US and Canada and up to $200 off on the Pixel 3 series in 2018. This year, Google is sending eligible customers an email offering them the Nest Hub (2nd gen) if they "upgrade to a Premium annual plan."
Hurry and save up to $50 on some awesome Nest speakers and displays
Get a big bundle or a mini speaker, your choice
Smart homes aren't just about security systems and automatically locking doors — they're also about getting you information you want quickly and establishing a mood when you want it. If you've shied away from smart displays and speakers but maybe are just waiting for the right opportunity to open up, here's a fantastic deal or two for you.
Huge Nest sale has something for everyone, including smart displays, speakers, cameras, thermostats, and doorbells
Who said Nest product couldn't be marked down on Prime Day?
If you've been online today, you've most probably noticed the avalanche of Prime Day deals. Although these include a lot of tech products, there are no Nest products in there. Thankfully, these products are also marked down and available from a bunch of online and physical retailers.
Get your house ready for summer guests with up to $99 off Nest speaker and display bundles
Music? In multiple rooms? Such luxury!
A lot of Google's hardware tends to be polarizing, but its recent Nest speakers and displays are pretty much universally liked. They're not terribly expensive, either, with the entry-level Nest Mini and Nest Hub starting at $50 and $100, respectively. If you're looking for a whole bunch of new kit, though, today's sales on eBay might interest you: you can save up to $99 on Nest bundles.
Sonos could get a whole bunch of Google products banned in Germany — is the US next?
The Pixel 4a, YouTube Music, Nest speakers, and potentially more might be affected
You may have heard that Sonos and Google are involved in a dispute over patent infringement in the US, with Sonos claiming that the search company used its power to steal intellectual property when they first partnered up. The legal debate isn't limited by borders, though. Sonos also brought Google to court in Germany, where it has managed to enforce a preliminary sales ban of a whole bunch of Google products using the Cast protocol.
Google just streamlined the setup process for smart displays and speakers down to about two minutes
Google Home now remembers more of your previous device preferences when setting them up
The Google Home app offers an excellent interface for controlling lights, speakers, and any other gadgets spread around your house. It's also used for setting up any Nest speaker or smart display. If you've ever had to set up more than one device at a time, you know how slow and frustrating choosing your default services can be. However, with the newest update to the Google Home app, the setup process just got a little bit quicker.
Google still hasn't solved year-old Nest Mini issues
Major problems persist for Google's Mini speaker
Turns out, the hotword detection failure on Wear OS isn't the only problem that remains unsolved by Google after many months. The Nest Mini, which was launched in October 2019, has been facing a couple of issues since at least December 2019. Much to the dismay of frustrated users, these problems have yet to be sufficiently addressed.
Google is going all-in on turkey fun this Thanksgiving
New Duo filters and a turkey timer on the Assistant on top of a Translate easter egg
Following its English to turkey translations in Search, Google has introduced some more fun Thanksgiving Easter eggs. On smart speakers and displays, the company has added a small audible and visual surprise when you tell the Assistant to set a turkey timer, and there is a new turkey filter in Duo that you can use for some laughs with your family while socially distancing.
Get a free Nest Mini by upgrading to 2TB of Google One storage
I feel so much better about losing unlimited Google Photos storage now
Google has been giving customers more reasons to subscribe to Google One recently, from adding a dedicated VPN to ending unlimited Google Photos storage. Now the company is throwing a new perk into the mix, offering a free Nest Mini smart speaker to Google One subscribers who upgrade to an annual 2TB storage plan.
Make your home smarter by adding a Nest Mini for just $30 ($20 off)
Google got jealous of seeing these Echo Dot deals for Prime Day
Like every year, Amazon is discounting a lot of its products for Prime Day, a moment a lot of people eagerly wait for, so they can snatch Echo or Kindle devices at a steal. This year, the retailer is selling its third-generation Echo Dot for just , which is $21 cheaper than its normal price tag.But what if you prefer to use Google Assistant? Well, you're in for a treat, as the latest generation Nest Mini is also on sale, currently down to $30, representing a $20 markdown compared to its regular price. Sure, that's $11 more than the Echo Dot, but at least you're getting the newest model, instead of the outdated one.
The best smart home devices you can buy right now (Fall 2020)
From voice assistant speakers to robot vacuums, and everything in between
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Millions of homes now contain a smart assistant speaker of some variety and sales of IoT products continue to grow as the market matures and prices come down across the sector. With so many options available, it's hard to know what to buy, and that's where we come in — this is a selection of our favorite smart home gadgets. Whether you want to just dip your toes in the water with a cheap Google Nest Mini or dive into the deep end with smart lights, cameras, thermostats, doorbells, and so on — we’ve got you covered.
Google Store now sells bundles of Nest hardware at embarrassing prices
By Grabthar's Hammer, what a savings
Remember a few months ago when Google teased an announcement for July 13th, only a week after the company said it was working on a new smart speaker? Remember how the big announcement was just that the Google Store had sales on hardware bundles, and the sales weren't even that good? Now Google is doing that again, but in a more permanent way.
Ringing alarms and timers on a Google Nest speaker can now be stopped from another room
Ding! Time for an overdue feature addition
Stop me if you think you've heard this one before. You set up a cooking timer on your Nest speaker or display in the kitchen, then go chill in the living room or the bedroom. When the timer rings, it just doesn't stop until you move your ass over to the kitchen and talk to that particular speaker, because yelling "stop" to the other Assistant units littered around your house doesn't do anything. We've complained about this for years, but the problem should finally be far behind us as Google is rolling out timer and alarm control across the entire house.
Mesh Wi-Fi is a game changer in environments where a single router just isn't cutting it, and there aren't many systems more user-friendly than Nest Wifi. A set with one router and two satellite points will normally run you $349, but today, Woot's got a rare deal on the three-pack: it's $280, down $69.
Google Assistant's Family Bell virtual nanny is now official
Reminders to eat, sleep, and take a break
Google has officially introduced a neat nagging new feature for its Assistant speakers and smart displays called Family Bell, starting to roll out today. If you're the kind of person who often forgets to eat or sleep on time, who procrastinates a lot, works for hours and forgets to stretch their legs, or otherwise misses the regular time cues of a normal day, you'll be able to rely on Assistant to remind you of all of them. Consider it a virtual parent or nanny living inside your speakers and always looking out for your best interest.
A few days ago, the Twitter account for Google Nest teased "something special" would be revealed today. Many (myself included) thought Google would share more details about the Nest speaker we saw last week, or maybe even the new Android TV dongle that the company has been working on, but nope. The big announcement is... some sales.
The Nest Mini can be had for ₩64,900 (or around $54 USD) in the usual branded white, black, blue, and pink colors; and the Nest Hub is ₩115,000 (or $96 USD) and available in white or black. If you're in South Korea and you're debating picking one up, feel free to check out our reviews for both the Nest Hub and Nest Mini — though if you wait, Google will probably start throwing them at you for free.
Google launches the Nest Mini in New Zealand with BOGO deal until June 28
The first Assistant speaker to officially come to the country
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Despite being a stone's throw away from Australia, New Zealand seems to have been massively neglected by Google. The company's official Store in NZ barely carries a few Nest cams and Chromecasts, whereas it's nearly fully-decked for Aussies. Things are looking up for Kiwis, though, as Google has just launched the Nest Mini in their country and is offering a buy one, get one deal for the next few days.
Google offering free Nest Mini to YouTube Premium subscribers
First come first serve, so you better hurry if you want one
A few weeks ago, Google sent out offers for a free Nest Mini to YouTube Premium subscribers, but people looking to redeem the voucher quickly noticed that it wasn't valid. Google backtracked, saying that the promo was a mistake on their end. But it looks like someone at the company simply turned on the UI for the present too early — YouTube and Google Play Music subscribers are now receiving an actually working offer to get a free Nest Mini on the Google Store.
How to preserve some privacy when you're using a Google Assistant speaker
You don't have to forgo a Google Home completely
Google Assistant speakers can be great tools, giving you an easy entry into voice-controlled home automation, but they can also feel like spies giving Google intimate insights into your life and daily routines. If you don't want to go without the convenience an Assistant speaker offers, there are at least some things you can do to make it less invasive.